


Different Jigsaw Pieces Connect

by subaryu



Category: Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活 | Re:Zero Starting Life in Another World (Anime)
Genre: Greedhard gets yandere, M/M, Misunderstandings, Wrathbaru gets hugged, blursed couple maybe?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:42:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28377147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/subaryu/pseuds/subaryu
Summary: What GreedIF!Reinhard and WrathIF!Subaru meet?
Relationships: GreedIFReinhard/WrathIFSubaru, Natsuki Subaru & Reinhard Van Astrea, Natsuki Subaru/Reinhard Van Astrea
Comments: 23
Kudos: 127





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A shipping fiction, because while there’s a few fan fictions for Julius X Subaru, there isn’t any for romantic Reinhard X Subaru. Well, actually, there’s a few that I believe are mostly in Chinese. I can read them, but that’s a bit harder than reading in English considering that Chinese isn’t my first language.
> 
> “Different Jigsaw Pieces Connect”? Why is that the title? Well, I thought it could be a poetic metaphor for how much of a crack shipping I’ve written. Like it’s Reinhard X Subaru, and that’s super rare to begun with. But from different IF stories as well? Now that’s ultra rare.
> 
> By the way, I love Julius X Subaru as well, there’s a few fan fictions that I especially love, like “The Vow” and “Revenge Is A Dish Best Served Cold.” Ugh, they’re so cute. Love the dynamic.

Subaru...

Subaru...

Subaru...

The harsh sunlight glared down on him as Reinhard opened up his eyes to meet the streets of the Capital of Lugunica, bustling with people. He began to walk around, a deep uncertainty within him, passing a certain appa stall and into the familiar backstreet alley he had met Subaru before. Only, now, it was probably devoid of the three former thieves, for they had been absorbed into Felt’s camp.

Or, rather, what was Felt’s camp. His heart still remains broken, only mended by a certain soot-haired man. With his fingers running through his crimson red hair, he sighed, feeling uncomfortable. His eyes now lay unfocused, as he sat down on the dusty ground, knowing that even if it was to become dirty, it will be magically cleaned up by the small spirits that were draw to him after.

What was he doing here of all places? By all means, he should be back at the new Mather’s manor, helping Subaru...

That’s right, Subaru. Subaru would know what to do, he always had an answer for anything. Subaru brought him everything.

When he was dropped into a deep depression, sinking in the abyss of a prison that was his own mind with the warden that was his own voice, Subaru extended a helping hand to the helpless him. That comforting voice, self-assured and determined, was like a crack of light for him. How did Subaru understood him so well? 

When he lamented about his falsehood as a hero and how he felt he was powerless as a farce placed there to trick the people, Subaru had turned this lie, this deceitful actor that he was, into truth. Thus, turning the liar with his colorful, wonderful promises, into a reality with the actions to back it up. Remembering the scene at Priestella, his lips willingly quirked upwards into a smile, remembering not the people that cheered and were saved, but instead the brilliant smile that Subaru had give him. 

“We really did it, didn’t we, Reinhard?” Were the words given to him, Reinhard had saved every second of the moment, only fearing that he’ll miss anything. 

Subaru...

Subaru...

Subaru...

Savoring the name, Reinhard’s heart begun pounding heavily, he then looked into a small puddle of water in front of him. On his face was an expression unsuitable for the Sword Saint, with sky blue eyes holding a dark glint that came together with his mouth and nose to form an emotion that he didn’t understand. It was possessiveness, but for who? 

“Subaru, where are you right now?” ‘I miss you,’ were the unsaid words. 

Pulse racing, back heating up, and lips dry, Reinhard then suddenly came to a complete realization as to what he was feeling. “I see... this is what love feels like.” 

Happiness blossomed as he felt almost giddy, this small but strong feeling was new yet welcomed for him. A monster, supposedly devoid of emotions, needs, or wants, like him could feel love. Subaru, who had already given him so much, had now allowed him to feel something precious that he had been longing for. Just like he always does. He always understands Reinhard so well, it wasn’t glamorous gifts nor aimless praise he desired, it was the wishes for forgiveness, for normalcy, and for family.

“Subaru...” Whispering the name with infatuated adoration, Reinhard stared at a red scarf and an orange handkerchief that he had pulled out from his jacket. He greedily sniffed the handkerchief while grasping the scarf like it had been a priceless treasure made out of costly jewels, he now truly understood why he had taken Subaru’s most frequently used handkerchief that day. He then stared in the scarf in fondness, the memory in his mind now playing. 

“Reinhard! You gotta tell me what you want for your birthday! Just so you know, it can’t be something like a diamond jacket or something like that. I’m poor, you know!” Grinning cheekily at him, Subaru made a strange gesture with one of his slender hands that made him stop in his tracks. He had been dressed in a dashing black-and-white suit, without the jacket and instead a vest that held a golden chain watch in its upper outer pockets. 

Reinhard had thought he looked particularly lovely that day. 

“Subaru, while I appreciate your well-meaning intentions, I don’t particularly think of my birthday as something worthy of celebration.”

Even with those words, Subaru still give what he had wanted most as a present, something that was nothing fancy nor made out of expensive material, only the clumsy efforts of a first-time knitter. “No laughing okay! I know you didn’t want anything for your birthday, but I just wanted to give you something on this day, okay?”

“Ah, you can be so loveably dishonest sometimes.” If Subaru asks him once again to choose, Reinhard knew what he would’ve chosen in a heartbeat. He will be a little greedy, just like what the former had always told him to be. 

Carefully placing the scarf and handkerchief back into his inner jacket pocket, he got up. And just like what he had thought, his clothes never got the chance to be dusty at all. With a small, genuine smile, he left the shadowed alleyway to met the sunlight of the main streets again. Thinking of Subaru always made him feel better, even when he’s in a sticky situation. Being teleported unknowingly back to the capital was an unpleasant experience, to say the least.

Wait, being teleported unknowingly? That meant Subaru would be completely defenseless right now, hopeless to the threats this world will throw at him. Perhaps it had been one of those threats that transferred him somewhere, whether it was the Authority of an Archbishop or an obscure, ancient magic, it didn’t matter. While Subaru was a mentally strong man, he was never physically strong, because Reinhard will be his sword and weapon. Frowning, he prepared to run off at his top speed, but he came face-to-face with a sight he wasn’t prepared to meet.

It was him! There was Subaru, sitting on the steps towards the main street with his back turned 3/4th away from him. That was a cause for celebration, but Reinhard’s joy didn’t last long as his own blood soon ran ice cold. Back in the mansion, Subaru had often wore an outfit fit for a noble, tailored to his exact inches and made out of high-quality cloth that ensured durability and comfort. This Subaru was wearing the black-and-orange ensemble that he had first met him in after being cornered by the three thieves. He held a haunted expression on his face as his eyes contain wariness towards the people who were walking among the streets while he almost huddled into himself in an effort to seem smaller. It give Reinhard the impression of a scared, frightened cat trembling and baring its claws towards the world because someone had once mistreated it. 

Anger fueled his mind before he had to bite his own bottom lip to calm himself. Then, with his most comforting smile and in the most gentle tone he could muster, he cried out to Subaru, “Subaru—“

Before Reinhard could finish his words, Subaru’s ears already picked up the footsteps he made noticeable. Subaru, startled, visibly finches at the sound of his name being called and the sight of the Sword Saint trying to close the rapidly decreasing distance between them. Getting up quickly, he wanted to run and get away from everyone and everything, but especially Reinhard. However, it didn’t play to his wishes as he was quickly enclosed in a tight embrace. 

N-No...! What is this? 

His last memory was of a pink-haired maid’s face, her expression of hatred as her hands slowly choked him. The echoes of the collapse of Pandemonium and the clashes of fighting, they all became fleeting as his eyes soon failed him. Even so, as everything soon faded to black, the last thought within his mind was...

...that the pink had disappeared. Leaving, trapping, embroiling, dooming, and sentencing him to a world of miserable black-and-white. Everyone is just a paper cut-out now, and everything had became a farce, empty soulless beings that served nothing but to be place there in order to deceive and lie to him. 

Even when he was returned to the very beginning, and given a restart from zero, Subaru’s vision remain devoid of color. This symbolized to him that nothing could be ever be trusted. So, he was content on just sitting here, and slowly allow himself to waste away into nothingness, whether it was either hunger or even the three thieves that’ll kill him first. He won’t resist.

“Subaru, what’s wrong? Please, you can talk with me about anything. I’ll always be on your side.” But Reinhard was here, still black-and-white, recognizing him in an instant while now kneeling in front of him and holding on his waists so tightly that they felt as if they had been handcuffed. 

Subaru’s body decided to curled up more and more within itself as his shaking worsen, though making no further resistance to Reinhard picking him up in a careful bridal carry and jumping over the nearby buildings to get to the Astrea Estate. The latter made this decision after a quick look over at Subaru’s worrisome state. While physically he was alright, but mentally, Reinhard feared the worse. His eyes had remained unfocused throughout the short journey even as his lips quivered, as if trying to say something but holding himself back before trying to once again speak. Eventually, it seemed like the former won out as Subaru’s lips remained closed off, Reinhard had received no words from Subaru throughout their entire encounter. 

It broke his heart, like someone had somehow managed to stabbed it repeatedly with a dull knife, but what Reinhard was feeling didn’t matter, what’s important is Subaru’s feelings. Regret, resentment, and anger towards himself begin to bubbled up, how could he let this happen? With all of his immerse strength, how could he allow someone, no, anyone to make Subaru to look so frightened, so afraid, and so desperate?

A new feeling, this time, not as welcomed as “love” began to spread its seed within the Sword Saint, it was an emotion that, as the most powerful being of this world, he never should’ve felt nor learned. It was “hatred.” Hatred for himself, having let Subaru fall to this state, hatred directed at the one who was primarily responsible. His blue eyes, the same color as a bright, perfect sky, darkened and turned into the color of dark storm clouds that brought forth lightning and hail. 

Suddenly, Reinhard snapped out of it after feeling a cold hand, no doubt that it had been Subaru’s, on his neck, a comforting gesture for him. He smiled cheerfully and assured the other, “I know, Subaru, I won’t degrade myself nor my honor like this anymore.”

If he continued to wallow himself in this despicable emotion, Subaru would be sad. 

The person himself in question was confused, not understanding Reinhard’s cryptic words, but he took it as a threat, especially since the latter had then tightened his hold on him. Did Reinhard noticed that he had been trying to see if he could choke Reinhard or not, given that the latter had his guard down and was in such close distance? Unfortunately, he himself knew best that he wouldn’t be able to succeed at such a task even with extensive preparations. 

In his last loop, didn’t he even had Cecilus and Halibel? And yet, he still lost.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha ha, by the way, I know I’m supposed to be updating Shoutabaru and what the heck am I doing writing this instead? But I was in need of an angst fix and that kind of mood isn’t really optimal for writing fluff, so I sorta kinda decided to write this. To purge out the angst within me, no?
> 
> An one shot, maybe? I wanted to make this longer, like 4000 more words. If people want me to continue it, I’ll try my best.
> 
> P.S. This was reposted because it said it was published on the 26th but when you clicked into it, it says the 28th. I didn’t like that so I just made it a new one. Sorry for any confusion!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, my sleep schedule’s all kinds of messed up. But yep, here’s chapter 2.

  
“Has he eaten yet?” This was said to the maid that was waiting patiently outside of Subaru’s bedroom, her head bowed in submission as she shook her head. An apologetic, disappointed expression on her face as she couldn’t stand to fail again and again. She had tried in vain to feed the other, only to be rejected and intimidated out of the room repeatedly. 

Besides her, there was a variety of breakfast dishes on a cart that was left there to get stone-cold as proof. Seeing this, Reinhard had no doubt that coming back here to the mansion on his own lunch break was the right choice. He gestured to the maid to get him new dishes and take the old ones away, he then open the door with a gentle smile directed at the huddling, hiding figure underneath a thick blanket. 

“Subaru?” That was the Sword Saint’s voice, it was full of false concern that served to mask the true despicable intentions that he had inside. Those intentions Subaru wasn’t too sure, yet, but he knew that the other had some kind of ulterior motives. 

Same as the housekeepers that clean his room, the cook that makes his food, or even the maid that tries to feed it to him. 

He could feel the soft mattress sink down a bit as Reinhard sat down, still in his official knight uniform. His cold gloved hands peeled back the layers of blankets that Subaru burrowed himself into, almost like he was taking away the layers of a shy onion. Eventually, a nest of black hair was revealed, paired along with a pair of brown eyes that glared at the sudden sunlight that came from a un-curtained window. 

It was adorable sight to behold, Reinhard thought, with his heart pulping faster than normal.

“Subaru, you were worried about Emilia-sama, aren’t you? Do not worry, for I made sure that the Bowel Hunter has been eradicated and taken care with.” And as for Felt, he decided to obey her wishes that’ll come into fruition in the near future, by giving Old Man Rom and the girl enough money to go out of the country and live happily in Kararagi. 

Emilia... In truth, for all of the planning he did to take her away from the Roswaal Mansion, Subaru haven’t thought about the half-elf much during this time at all. All of his thinking was preoccupied by Reinhard, and what him and his red hair is planning. But what interested him about this sudden tidbit of information wasn’t the words that Reinhard had given him, but rather the expression on his face and tone of his voice as he said it. 

Reinhard had knew that Elsa would strike and he took care of her. That was surprising by itself, as it confirmed with Subaru that Reinhard must’ve had came from another time loop now. That was why he’s now been taken and imprisoned in the Astrea Estate, since Reinhard is fearful of the misdeed he could and would perhaps do again. His treatment, though, wasn’t bad as he would’ve thought that he deserved, given that the servants treat him like a revered guest. 

However, Reinhard’s look of general hatred and anger surprised him greatly, he had almost wanted to ask the former if Elsa was actually dead now. Though killing wasn’t out of the ordinary for a knight, much less a Sword Saint, it still felt out of place for someone like Reinhard to actually kill. After all, the man had felt like an impossible ideal of a hero.

“She is, completely and undeniably, dead now, Subaru. She will never hurt you, nor any innocents, ever again.” But especially you, Reinhard added inside his own mind. 

His eyes darkened while remembering the dark-haired woman’s body, eradicated and shred, not with Reid as she had desired, but with a common tree branch. It struck her heart with a immediate stab and there had been a sudden rush of adrenaline as he then dumped her body on the ground with the stick still inside. Stepping on it like it had been mere dirt underneath his shoes, he waited for any response as her body twitched in futile, almost pitiful resistance.

It had been his philosophy to give anyone a chance to repent, but when he remembered that flash of crimson that appeared on Subaru’s stomach, Reinhard saw that same red. It just fueled his obsession—no, his love for Subaru further. 

Looking down at the black hair dirtied with grass and mud, he had sighed and then said with a wistful expression on his face, “How sad that the black hair had been stained.” 

A knocking came from outside of the bedroom, at that sound, Subaru visibly finches before slowly moving the blankets over him again, in a vain attempt to feel a sense of safety. A funny thought then came into his mind, mocking him for using flimsy quilts as a shield when the Sword Saint is right there and quite versatile. 

‘He can’t be trusted.’ That kind, gallant exterior is merely a shell, a painted over outer layer, like that of a painted egg. The egg will be colored in joyful patterns that seek to delight a child, only to disappoint and poison once it’s been revealed that the insides have gone bad. Or like a shiny, red apple, one looking fresh and picked right out of a tree, only to be full of worms when you bite in. 

Reinhard had taken a cart from the maid and came back to him, his hair, a signature feature of the man, remained black-and-white. He sat down again, smiling like a handsome conman, his right hand raised toward Subaru’s mouth with a steaming spoonful of chicken soup. Taking into consideration the hot temperature, he blown on it slightly before staring at Subaru with what Subaru would’ve called “puppy-dog eyes.” It was overpowered when used in combination with his attractive face. 

“Come on, say, ‘Ahhh,’” Reinhard then coaxed him like he was a spoiled child, though Subaru supposed that he was indeed one in the eyes of the Astrea estate servants, “If you don’t eat something soon, Subaru, you’re not going to grow any taller.” 

While towards the maid, Subaru had stared and glared at her with his dead, cold eyes until she grew too fearful to try and feed him. Surprisingly, he had obediently opened his mouth for Reinhard, causing the other to then give him a stinging lady-killer smile. It blinded his eyes far more than the sunlight ever could, and he had the thought of just huddling underneath his blankets again, just long enough the smile goes away. 

“Good job, Subaru.” Hearing praises from his enemy felt strange, even more so for such a mundane task. It could be done with such ease that babies, born within a day, could do it. Yet, here he was, being complimented. 

It wasn’t out of trust for the man that only Reinhard could feed him food, it was out of a test and a realization that he could do nothing to the other. He was too powerful to kill, to threaten, or to be done anything to. So even if Reinhard wanted to hurt him, there was nothing he could do.

So he opened his mouth to the other, making the Sword Saint personally spoon feed him. He wanted to see what was the other’s bottom line, to what extent was the crimson-haired man willing to accustom him? There was also a strange, underlying sense of pride, making the other do this. Making the strongest man alive on this planet do the menial task of a servant. 

As Subaru continued to take in bite after bite from his hand, Reinhard felt a sigh of relief being released within himself. His eyes occasionally glanced down at Subaru’s arms, skinnier and looking malnourished, before glancing back at the tray full of delicious-looking food full of color that tried its best to entice. He understood that Subaru wasn’t even going to finish half of this and from reports he had gotten, Subaru can’t even stomach the small amount that he does eat. 

Deep inside him, Reinhard had felt a sense of elation when he first realized that Subaru would only eat food that came from him, not any other person. It such a lovable, spoiled display of dependence and Reinhard wanted to pamper him. But it was soon replaced by the realization that this would not work forever. His knightly duties, coupled with his workload as the Sword Saint, couldn’t continue this routine. In fact, his limited lunch break had probably ran out by now. 

Carefully softening his words, Reinhard picked up a napkin as he diligently wiped the corners of Subaru’s mouth, “Subaru, I’m going introduce someone to you tomorrow, okay? Don’t worry, he is coming here to help. He’s a very good friend of mine, named Felix.” 

Eyes widening while a sense of paranoia and anxiety washed over him, Subaru gripped onto one of Reinhard’s sleeves. No, no, no, he didn’t want to meet this Felix.

Reinhard had learned to calm this reaction of Subaru down rather quickly, the latter has had identical reaction to everyone new he’s met. Gently taking Subaru in a comforting embrace, one of Reinhard’s hand rubbed Subaru back in a small circular motion as the other’s hurried, desperate breathing slowly came to a more measured pace. 

“It’s okay, I’ll be right there with you. There’s nothing to worry about.” A pleasant, baritone voice whispered into Subaru’s ears. 

Tomorrow had arrived too soon for Subaru. 

“Nya, Felix! At your service!” The cheerful voice of a blue-dress-wearing cat boy echoed though the extravagantly decorated halls. He glanced around, the ears on his hand twitching in excitement, before stating to the crimson-haired man besides him. “I gotta say, I can’t believe that I finyally get to see the Astrea Estate for myself nyow.”

Reinhard had an apologetic expression on his face, “Sorry for the inconvenience, Felix. I hope that one day, I can take you and Julius on a tour of the place when possible. However, today, I have a favor I’ll like to ask of you.” 

Nodding in understanding, Felix responded with a smug smile, “It’s about the matter you talked about last time, right? Seriously, you gotta relied on your friends more, nya. Don’t worry, I’ll try nya best to help out with whatever it is.” 

With a look of gratitude, Reinhard replied with a simple, “You have my utmost thanks.”

“Geez, you should said that afterwards. With that smile of yours, you look like a heart thief! I knyow a few good nyumber of noble ladies that would just love to get with you!” 

“While I am very appreciative, there’s only one person whose heart I would like to steal.”

Ears perking up in excitement and interest, Felix thought for a moment, ‘Those words and this unexpected favor, could they be related?’

As the duo arrived in front of a lavishly decorated door, Felix couldn’t wait to open it, as it had felt like a large mystery gift. Who could it be that lives beyond this door? Reinhard had then raised a hand to softly knock, almost as if he was afraid to bother or startled the person living inside. This caused Feliz’s interest to peaked. While his friend had treated everyone with respect and courtesy, it had been an unexpected surprise for him to find that Reinhard was almost tiptoeing. 

“Subaru? I’m going to enter with Felix, alright?” 

Subaru? Well, that’s a name people don’t hear too often, personally, this would be the first ‘Subaru’ he’s going to met in his lifetime.

The two waited at the door for a bit, lingering until a response was given. Finally, a minute had passed in dead silence until Reinhard started to speak once again, “My apologies, he doesn’t talk much and he hasn’t gotten used to strangers much.” And with those words, he opened the door.

Felix wasn’t too sure what he had thought he would find or who he would met. Perhaps, a high-class, beautiful lady like no other, one that had a sickly exterior but had a good heart and tries to smile at all cost. Or maybe, a defenseless elder that had fallen ill and was in need of aid, while also being somewhat mute and sensitive to sounds. Who he had met beyond the door was completely out-of-the-box.

A pale, thin young man with black hair, like a night sky devoid of any stars, he was dressed in pale red robes and nothing much else as it seems. Most of his body was covered by the blankets he had amassed and piled around him, resembling a defensive fort. Perhaps, what was most striking was the young man’s eyes, with his eye shape looked mean-spirited. Meanwhile, the irises look dead and emotionless as they sized up Felix as if he were a cold corpse. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ll be updating Shoutabaru next, as an update is long overdue. But I have written this with surprising speed, so I decided to just post it. Do tell me of any grammar error, please. I didn’t check as extensively as I could’ve this time.


End file.
